Home Season 6 begins with Dr. Gregory House (Hugh Laurie) checking himself into a psychiatric facility to finally resolve his Vicodin addiction. House hopes to leave as soon as his physical detox is finished, but House's psychiatrist, Dr. Darryl Nolan, wants him to move to a long-term care facility. House is suddenly surrounded by the patients of Ward 6, including his new roommate, Juan “Alvie” Alvarez (Lin-Manuel Miranda), who plays a brief but important role in the series.
House only seeks help at the end of Home Season 5, after he starts hallucinating his two deceased colleagues, who he feels responsible for. These deaths were the shocking suicide of Lawrence Kutner in Home and Amber Volakis' bus accident while helping an unlit house. While House is far from the usual Home main characters, House forms an unexpected but vital friendship with Alvie during his time at Mayfield. Alvie's friendship with House is an important part of House's recovery.
Alvie de Miranda is introduced as House's roommate at the psychiatric hospital
Alvie is bipolar but refuses to take medication
House hasn't even opened his suitcase when he hears Alvie approaching, babbling a million words a minute. Alvie immediately tells him that this isn't the first time he's been hospitalized for stopping his medication. Alvie, who is bipolar, explains that he hates feeling slower while on medication. Alvie immediately bonds with House when she discovers that House is also refusing drugs, and Alvie becomes House's biggest supporter in District 6 when House tries to cause chaos in the Ward. House's quiet focus is the perfect counterbalance to Alvie's non-stop hyperactive musings.
Alvie's adoration for House leads him to do anything to help him rebel against the doctors, from breaking into Dr. Nolan's office to allowing House to punch him in the face. When House stops fighting Dr. Nolan and starts taking his prescribed antidepressants, Alvie feels betrayed. In one of HomeIn House's most tense episodes, House inadvertently causes another patient on the ward to almost die. House finds himself in a fragile mental state and attacks Alvie, telling him to stop “worshiping"him and focus on yourself"life of a loser.”
In one of HomeIn the best House episodes, House finds a unique way to apologize to Alvie. Ward 6 has a talent show and Alvie insists on freestyle rapping. When Alvie freezes and can't finish the barre, House saves Alvie by finishing the rhyme in the back of the room. Alvie is very happy, “calling Doctor House to the stage,” and as a sign of how far House has progressed, House actually joins him. House's release from the facility is the impetus for Alvie to begin taking her medication and begin to improve.
Alvie helps House solve a “baggage” case
Alvie's suggestion leads to the discovery of the identity of an amnesiac patient
After his release from the mental hospital, House stays with Dr. James Wilson for a few weeks. Upon returning to his apartment, he is surprised to find Alvie staying there. Alvie is worried that the immigration services are looking for him, so he is hiding out at House's house. Determined not to be a “freeloader”, Alvie proudly shows House that she is painting the apartment. However, he sheepishly admits that he had to pawn some of House's belongings to pay for the custom color. The gesture is classic Alvie – at once captivating and exasperating.
|
Episodes of House with Juan “Alvie” Alvarez by Lin-Manuel Miranda |
|
|---|---|
|
Episode number |
Episode summary |
|
Season 6, Episode 1, Part 1 “Broken” |
Alvie assists House in his plans to trick Mayfield's doctors. |
|
Season 6, Episode 1, Part 2 “Broken” |
Alvie and House fight when House decides to start taking medication. House repairs his friendship with Alvie by helping him with his rap at the Mayfield Talent Show. |
|
Season 6, Episode 20 “Baggage” |
Alvie hunkers down in House's apartment while avoiding Immigration. Alvie helps House identify a patient with amnesia. House breaks the law to resolve Alvie's citizenship status. |
House is rarely generous during all seasons of Homebut House lets Alvie stay, but decides to bring Alvie along on his case, for the sake of his apartment. HomeThe patient of the week is a woman with amnesia who has no memories and doesn't even know her name. House follows the trail to the neighborhood where the woman's heart monitor was purchased, but no one recognizes her.
Alvie notices a donut shop and begs House to stop. there, even if it seems irrelevant to the case. The woman agrees that a donut looks good, and the woman inside recognizes the patient and provides her husband's contact information. Thanks to Alvie's unconventional thought process, House is able to obtain the medical history needed to save his patient.
What Happened to Alvie In House by Lin-Manuel Miranda
House lies to the government for Alvie
Alvie is Puerto Rican, but he has no documents to prove it. Due to his manic tendencies, he never completed the process of requesting the paperwork he needed, which is why Alvie is hunkered down in House's apartment to avoid ICE. Alvie's loyalty as a friend becomes evident when House asks for the belongings Alvie sold to finance painting the apartment. House manages to repurchase everything except one book, and Alvie goes so far as to steal the only book the buyer wasn't willing to resell.
House tricks Alvie into appearing in court where House provides fabricated evidence to establish Alvie's matriarchal lineageproving that Alvie is an American citizen in the eyes of the law. House may be a complete jerk, but he cares more about his former roommate than he admits. Suddenly a free man, Alvie leaves House's apartment to live with his cousin in Arizona. In a bittersweet Home At this moment, House looks wistful as he reads Alvie's goodbye note, because although he didn't think Alvie would be there indefinitely, he will still miss her chatty energy.